Inflation these days is no surprise to anyone and municipalities feel the pinch at the pump just like the rest of us.

So if you just look at the numbers, it might seem the Purcell Police Department in 2022 has changed its style of policing to keep a cap on the bottom line.

And you would be wrong.

Retirements and resignations are the driving force behind the slow down, according to police chief Bobby Elmore.

“Some who left were high activity officers,” Elmore said, adding the department has hired five replacements.

One of those is out of training, two are presently in field training and two have started 16 weeks of pre-certification training at the Basic Police Officer Certification Academy at Metro Technology Center.

New hires who aren’t already CLEET certified must complete the BPOCA.

Upon graduation and with certification in hand, they have four months field training with a Purcell  officer.

“We are back to fully staffed, but not to where they can be out on their own,” Elmore said.

The four months of local field training with an officer is a crucial element in readying officers to hit the streets solo.

“They are not prepared to be on their own right out of the academy,” Elmore said.

Under the terms of the recently approved 2022-23 contract with the Fraternal Order of Police, the department pays $18.60 per hour to non-certified probationary officers.

The state average for certified police officers is $17 per hour.

Once certified, that wage increases to $20.65 per hour.

At the conclusion of six months probationary status, the pay for Patrolman 1 is $22.66 hour.

After two years, there are step increases for Patrolman 2, Master Patrolman, Corporal, Sergeant, Lieutenant and Patrol Captain.

The pay is one of three key elements to keeping officers motivated, Elmore believes, along with overall morale and a good administration.

“If you are not happy with the people you work for, you’re not going to hang around,” he explained. “Purcell has nice equipment, good pay, insurance.”

Still, officers can be lured away by larger departments which can pay more and offer specialized assignments.

“Here, what you are is what you are,” Elmore said.

However, city manager Dale Bunn added Purcell offers training in crisis intervention and “knowing how to talk  down a situation.”

Fielding an officer with that training is a staple on every shift, he added.

Elmore said the department casts a wide net when recruiting, utilizing social media such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

In addition, he has visited the academies in person to introduce cadets to what Purcell has to offer.

“The last round, we went to Moore-Norman (Technology Center) and spoke to the students,” he said. “That’s how we got the two we just hired.”

Elmore said the activity numbers will climb as the new hires complete all of their training.

Until then with inflation being what it is, there’s a hidden blessing for the department’s budget.

In the first six months of 2022, the police drove just 7,575 miles and issued only 183 citations.

During the same period in 2019, the mileage total was 107,803 miles and police issued 938 citations.

Granted, the pandemic in 2020 and 2021 may have set a few brakes on police travel.

But officers still racked up 96,107 and 94,265 miles, respectively, in the first half of those years.